


School Daze

by AwatereJones



Series: Crawlers [14]
Category: Torchwood
Genre: Alt Verse, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Drama, F/M, Family, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-26
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-07-02 22:30:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15805839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwatereJones/pseuds/AwatereJones
Summary: Settling into a routine can sometimes mean some boring time that needs a bit of fun injected bit we have to remember to be vigilant. Still a world of Zs our there...and other things. Winter is almost here, time to settle in and make this place work ... or leave for another site. soon there will not be a choice. Love my crumbly cakexxxx





	1. Chapter 1

Ianto stirred and felt the bed for the roominess of it, revelling some rare star-fishing as Jack's voice boomed outside, something he and Rhys were talking about that for some reason had to be done with them at different parts of the garden.

Ianto knew it was lazy, having a lie-in but he thinks he earned it so why not?

When he felt something in the bed and looked down towards his feet where a dog was stretching as well, a little yawn as it looked back at him expectantly.

"Go on then, the doors are open. You don't need me to pee" Ianto frowned then sighed as it let him know with the silent stare that it didn't agree with that assessment. He sighed and rose, smiling as he slipped his feet into the slippers waiting for him, bedazzled by a little princess who was overly excited about all the glittery shit her Taddy had returned with and he privately hoped she ran out soon.

"Be toilet paper next" he muttered to himself as he shuffled to the bathroom and looked furtively at said roll of paper then snorted at himself. Laughter was echoing in the halls and he smiled as he excited the bathroom and headed to the kitchen where Wei was with Mica, arguing about where the potted colour was going to go for the day. Each day the same argument and Mimi always won.

"There he is" Gwen smiled as she looked up from her book, "You dirty stop in."

"I know … horrid aren't I?" he grinned as he settled next to her, "Whatcha reading missus?"

"Wuthering heights but it's boring a hell" she huffed.

"Gods, even I won't attempt that one again. You need a nice Nicholas Sparks or something love. I'll hook you up" Ianto patted her arm affectionately as Rhys entered.

"Aye, aye. Feeling up me woman already? That man o' yours not doing the business for ya? I bet it's those braces!" Rhys quipped and Ianto went to retort when Jack entered and he saw the reason for the amusement, the braces that had been bedazzled were sending light around the room in a kaleidoscope of colour.

"Wow" Ianto said softly, "I only got slippers."

Jack grinned as he posed, "Awesome, eh? My little princess is taking care of me!"

Ianto felt a swell of affection as he heard Jack claiming Mica, the little one still pulling a pot of flowers around the floor as Wei laughed and pulled it back each time she turned away.

"What's your plan for today love?" Gwen asked.

Ianto considered as he leaned back in the chair, "Well … I want to check the fences and then shear that sheep we found that hasn't been shorn in bloody years."

"How?" Rhys asked as he walked in from the kitchen to offer Ianto some toast with peanut butter smeared on it the way he liked.

"Hand shears" Ianto said as he picked up a slice of toast and bit into it then hummed happily.

"Can I watch?" Rhys asked with open interest.

"Me too?" Wei joined in and the others nodded, even Crypto who found the sheep weird and wonderful things.

"Tell you what, I will do it there in the yard so the kids can have the wool for crafts" Ianto pointed, "But … if you want nice clean wool we need to get the sheepie before it finds the creek and gets wet and muddy. Last night it rained."

The kids took off, Owen running after them with a sheet under his arm they could throw over the shep.

"Wow. Like a VIP sheep now" Andy laughed as he shook his head, "It won't hurt it will it?"

"No, they don't mind" Ianto laughed softly, "They get awful hot. I won't do it close to the skin, leave an inch. Snows coming so they will be going into the old tunnel house for winter, he will be warm enough in there."

"Will he?" Jack looked worried, "Will he need a little coat or something?"

Ianto looked at him long and hard to see if he was kidding then smiled softly, "You are a soft hearted man."

"That was a good idea Tosh had, the second tunnel house all overgrown with weeds and stuff. Nothing that is poisonous?" Jack asked as they wandered after the kids.

"No, Wei checked. They will love devouring the grass and those two bloody goats will rampage happily with the big stuff."

"I wanna get into that other one, those lettuces are fantastic!" Rhys was gushing, then he took off as they saw a sheep race past with Owen clinging to its back yodelling.

Jack stopped walking, "Ianto? Is that deliberate?"

"No Cariad, I guess the sheep rammed him and Owen grabbed hold in an attempt to control it" Ianto shrugged.

"Rammed him?"

"Called a Ram isn't it?"

Jack roared with mirth as he pulled Ianto in for a kiss.

Cheeky bugger.


	2. cracks?

Ianto took some time to enjoy the perimeter, walking sedately along with the dogs racing ahead only to double back like he was a real drag holding everyone up. It felt nice, Crypto, commenting that when in dog form he felt more comfortable having other dogs to blend in with, was along for the lope. Andy's comment that he was always a bit of a dog going down well as Crypto had grabbed for him.

Ianto was almost back to the school when he felt something change and he shifted gear to move swiftly towards his daughter, her anger raw as she placed her little hands on her hips and leaned forward to speak to Kip. Ianto could not yet hear the words but the anger and snootiness was rolling off her in waves.

Kip's hand snaked out to seize her upper arm and Rhys bellowed before Ianto could, everyone turning to watch the large man slam Kip away from Mica as he stepped between them, shielding the little girl. "What the hell are you doing!"

"Mica!" Ianto called out as he arrived and knelt to pull her close, her shock now evident as she clung to him and Jack came thundering up on a horse, effortlessly swinging from the saddle to stride over.

"What the hell was that?"

"He was hurting her!" Rhys spluttered, Gwen now pushed at them all to reach Mica, checking her arm.

"I barely touched her! I found the science lab trashed and…."

"That was me!" Owen interrupted "And it's not trashed. I am inventorying before we start making a bloody purifier."

"You grabbed her" Ianto stepped forward into Kip's space, "We've talked about this. Did I not tell you she is not a student? She is my daughter and this is not your fucking school anymore!"

"Oh yes it is. I was here first, here during and I will be here after!" Kip snarled, "This is a place of learning and there will be some rules and regu…"

Jack shoved him back, "Speak to Ianto like that again. Go on, I dare you. Speak to my Tiger like that again."

"Let's all take a breath" Tosh said as she looked around at the anger on display, "This might have been a school but things have changed. Kip, if you are claiming ownership we will leave. We don't want to but we will all leave and you can have your school all to yourself."

Kip looked stricken as Scout agreed, "Yeah, there are other places we could bug out to, the stock and most of the goods do not belong to the school so we will simply pack up and go. I'm in, let me get my things."

The little man started to stomp off as Jack started a low chuckle, then he laughed softly, "Come on. What the hell. Everyone take an hour to cool off."

Ianto walked slowly towards the house his gestures stilted as Kip called after him "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. Ianto!"

Jack followed with Mica and found Ianto staring at a wall, his face centimetres from it as he breathed deeply. Jack asked "What are you doing?"

"He is visualising killing Kip" Mica answered sedately, "He is tearing his skin off with a big hook thing. Sometimes he pretends he is boiling him in the swimming pool, this one is new."

Jack let her slide from his hp to her feet, "Ianto?"

Ianto took another breath then relaxed, "It's OK. If I ever really kill him it will be a less messy way."

Jack watched Ianto shake his hands at the wrists as he tried to relax, "Ianto, come here. Let me hold you."

"I am too angry, you will get a bolt that would send you across the room" Ianto replied softly, "This is not just a place of learning as he put it, it is also a place of my kind. There are things here in the very mortar that makes me stong, dangerous. He knows this too, yet he pushes."

"Why?" Jack asked, "Why does he push?"

"He fears me" Ianto turned to face Jack, "when we were students here it was ruled with an iron fist and a hard strap. Things have not changed much, some of us are still prone to anger and we were controlled with violence. Some species only saw that, praise didn't work. Kip was primarily working with those children. He is an enforcer. He is having trouble seeing Mica as mine, as out of bounds and wants to dominate. He sees fear as ownership. Watch Wei flinch when he walks past her and you will see how he prefers children. We have always clashed, even as I care for him as a friend I do not like that steak of nastiness."

"We can leave" Jack said after a moment of silence cursing, "If that would help."

"Or we can dig a big hole and point to it when he starts again" Scout said as he stomped past with an arm full of food, "Staying or going for him. Not us?"

"Put that back! We stay. He pulls his head in" Ianto sighed and Scout huffed as he turned to go back the way he had come.

"Temper."

"Yes, we do have one of those. The older we get, the better we are at controlling it. At Scouts age there can be thunderstorms to rival cyclones."

"And at your age?"

Ianto looked at Jack coyly, "We are simply more like an earthquake rumbling beneath the surface."

Jack laughed as he kissed him and tried to soothe some more.

He knew others were talking to Kip now and hopes it didn't turn into some sort of bum fight.

Scout was dragging the shovel past as they embraced.


	3. Rules!

"Ianto?"

Ianto turned to find Kip in the doorway of the library looking around with shock at the transformation, after a moment of consideration he motioned him in, "Not been in since I painted?"

"Goddess on a Harley … you said you painted but…wow. Forgot how artistic you are" he was turning on a slow circle as he looked up at the fake ceiling of sky.

"Kip, we cannot agree all the time. I do not expect us to but on my child there is no discussion, no compromise and definitely no bloody committee vote. Touch her again and you will find how strong I am. Do you understand me?" Ianto did not change his tone of voice, did not raise it or show any malice yet Kip heard the warning beneath the surface.

"I know you are strong, the strongest I've met. I know. But … it is hard wired in me to control, to punish. I can't just switch it off like that" Kip clicked his fingers then yelped as Ianto seized them.

"If I broke them you might learn to click then for a better purpose?"

"Stop it" Kip pulled his hand back, "I know I was always the bully but … she didn't mean it did she? About you all leaving me here?"

Kip tried not to show his fear that bled from his pores and Ianto tried not to show the stench was making him ill. He sighed, "Line."

"Thank you" Kip breathed a sigh of relief, the thought of this place all on his lonesome was horrifying.

They walked to the cafeteria and got a surprise to find Mica standing in a chair drawing on the write board that had been used to write the specials of the day. Ianto was quietly amused to see the house rules being written in big letters along with flowers and bees. Even a butterfly or two was scribbled in around the angry words.

A new one emerged in her scraggly writing.

Nobody hurts anybody else in our family

"Ah … Mimi. What a wonderful rule. I think that is the best one yet" Ianto smiled.

"No, still likes the one that claims us the best" Jack argued, "I mean seriously… she is the boss."

"Yep" she popped the P as she stepped down from the chair and stood back to look at her handiwork, "Botheration. Can't reach the top. Needs colour."

"Well … if Aunty Gwen supervises, you can pull a table over to stand on, but only for today for whatever you draw must be pleasing as it will likely stay there forever." Ianto warned and she nodded with glee.

"I think there is silver somewhere, you could do some silver clouds" Gwen offered the little girl and Mica frowned. "You've not heard of that love? Every cloud has a silver lining."

Her little face changed to glace at her father who nodded, "Yes, they do say that. For how the sun peeks around them I guess, the white light after a storm."

"I like it!" she decided. "Thank you Aunty Gwennie."

"Any time sweetie" Gen gushed happily.

"Food!" Rhys called and they settled for a snack, Scout talking to Owen about an idea for some hydroponics in the next room, so when the snow is high they don't have to brave it for some fresh veggies or such. Ianto knew it would be at least a week of fun building and creating their little jungle, Owen lighting up as he listened.

"I like plants"

Wei turned to look at Owen with interest, "You do? You like gardening?"

"No, plants. I think they are fascinating, all the work that is needed to grow them, their different style and In the before time I had a greenhouse at work" Owen informed her.

"He did" Tosh smiled, "Loved the plants, would stroke them and talk to them. I swear to god they perked up too."

"Why not, I think some are sentient, right?"

"Yes" Wei agreed, "Plants are clever, some are anyway. Why they are still around, will be long after we are gone."

"Sobering thought" Owen frowned as he sat back and chewed his sandwich, "This bread … this is good!"

"Ta, two bread makers" Rhys said smugly, "Running off their own solar panel in the kitchen there. Me woman here set them up."

Gwen preened as Tosh went to look and returned saying they were a good job.

"Now that's the thinking we need" Jack pointed with his knife earning a soft scolding from Ianto about knife safety that had him grinning as he promised not to stab anyone today.

"Promises, promises" Ianto huffed, "Like the … I won't put my foot in the paint love."

"Well .. that's different. It was not my foot anyway. It was my hand!" Jack finally argued, "I was crawling iut from under the desk after plugging in your laptop as I recall!"

"Oh I see ... my fault now is it?" Ianto's' eyes danced with merriment and Kip sighed with relief as it seemed he was truly being forgiven.

Then he looked over at Crypto and knew he was not out of the woods yet.

The man's eyes glowed with anger still..


	4. down time ideas

"Ianto? Got a sec?" Jack called and Ianto stifled a sigh as he placed down the book and stood to be seen over the pile of books. "There he is"

Ianto turned to find Jack walking towards him with Rhys in tow "Rhys and I are gonna make a start on that gym we are converting into a winter stock area. We will want to rip up the floor boards and stuff so we can get to the dirt. What?"

Ianto had pulled a face at them and now stood considering his answer.

"This building had a small area beneath it that is full of stuff, you need to empty all that out first…also … if you take up the floor boards and have them down on the dirt it will let the cold into the other areas as well as the fact they will be shitting everywhere." Ianto said as he looked between each man. "Wouldn't it be more logical instead of tearing up the floorboards which are currently covered in the linoleum to simply run a thick rotary blade down the floor in large groves so the shit can sort of… fall through? Then it's a matter of shovelling out the cavity beneath now and then. Good fertilizer."

They stood staring at him like he had grown an extra head then Rhys grunted, his whole body convulsing.

"Where do we get a saw like that babe?" Jack asked with interest.

"Well … ideally if we take a chainsaw to it" Ianto gave the bland reply "We don't have a fire engine with their lovely large saws but the chainsaw for trimming the trees is a smaller weight than the big bastard and the grooves would be large enough for sweeping down the linoleum … maybe at each end we put in a grill work or something… make an area open, we can lift up on hinges or something… I don't know. This isn't my rodeo."

"It's all your rodeo, we are clinging on for dear fucking life" Rhys laughed as he slapped Ianto's shoulder, "You are a fucking genius. Anyone ever tell you that? He's right Jack, warmer for them, easier to keep clean and definitely good shit for the gardens in spring. Will keep the smell down too, we lay straw and old newspaper or whatever down on the under floor first to help drink up the piss and then go for it. Hose it down once a week … yeah. We can use the nets to section them off so we can work in an area without fuzzies. Shit, great. I'll go find Crypto."

Rhys swung and bounced off, Ianto canting his head, "He reminds me of Tigger from Winnie the Pooh. See the way he bounces on the balls of his feet when happy?"

"That was a good idea. I know we will be putting the large stock in the tunnel house but there are some we need inside." Jack was watching Ianto as he looked around at his feet, "What are you looking for?"

"The book I was just reading damn it all. I started to move these to the hallways outside bedroom doors like stacking wood so in the cold nights we can bank our fires with them and found one interesting. Next thing ya know I was reading it, now I set it down and it's gone in the wilds."

"There, does that one have something in it?"

Ianto swung to see where he was pointing and his face lit up, "YES!"

He lifted the book and opened it, the crisp fifty pound note inside a strange and amusing bookmark.

"Really? If you've lost it you would have burnt that" Jack laughed, then started to roar as he finally saw how silly that remark was. It was just paper now after all, right?

Ianto grinned with him then whispered, "Scout wants to rob a bank so he can paper his walls with money. Weird little nutta."

Jack laughed some more and pulled Ianto in for a kiss over the pile of books, "Stacking the ones you don't want outside doors is a great idea. Stack them on the side, then we can stack some wood the other. The halls are so wide I could drive a bloody….."

Jack had stalled out and Ianto frowned as he wondered what idea had bloomed, Jack's eyes gleaming with excitement and Jack turned to run off yelling for Owen with open glee.

Ianto had an idea it might not be something he was gonna like.

Jack seemed way to childlike with glee over it.

Ianto sat.

He read some more.


	5. Ianto spots a hole

Ianto was coming out of the room with another trolley full of books to push down the hall when he froze.

The large front doors were off and the men were laying them down the steps to the front entrance, something that set off alarm bells and he started towards them to ask them what was happening, then stopped to stare at one of the front classrooms that had lost its door as well. Well … its entire fucking wall had been removed.

I mean … there had been some chainsaw noise and such but he thought it meant they had stared in the Gymnasium for the pets … it never occurred to him they were up to something and as he stood staring into the cleaned out room there was a rumble of an engine and he turned in time to see the ATV come shooting up the door-ramp into the hall, then Owen gleefully skidded it into a drift around him winding up in the empty room.

"Really?" Ianto said calmly, "We have given the end gymnasium to the vehicles, the next gymnasium to the animals… you are really putting more vehicles in here? Does it not fit in the end gymnasium?"

"It fits down the halls" Jack said as he helped Rhys and Andy lift one of the huge doors to re-hang, "Means if we wanna move heavy stuff we have that to do it for us. We don't need two now the winter is creeping in and we agreed to scavenge for some more ATVs next year so this one can be put inside one. We will wash it love, it will not make tracks in the carpet. Honest."

Ianto felt the urge to scold but saw the glee on their faces as they talked, watched Owen pat the handlebars lovingly and decided to let it slide. After all they were right. If they needed to empty out a room that would do a job of it … and Owen looked so happy. A little winter project to potter with it I guess.

"Good idea. If you take the motorbikes in as well and elevator them up to one of the abandoned floors you can have a little course to play in with the snows too."

Now they were beside themselves with the idea, running to see how many they really had and Kip was pointing to a shed, "Mine is in there, I got one too!"

Ianto turned to go and stopped short as Gwen stood there watching him "That was good idea. They will be entertained for hours."

"Well … this place is going to be like a prison in the snow season. I don't want you to go all 'The Shinning' or anything. They can have one day a week of madness up there, leaving us to peace down here. If they choose the third or fourth story we won't barely even hear them."

Gwen looked up, "What about the roof? I mean … the open deck area."

"It will snow over, it fills up I'm afraid and we want it that way. If anyone flies a drone over and somehow finds us we don't want a cleared roof, sort of give us away. Same with digging paths about the place, why we put the closed walkway to the tunnel houses. Snow can cover the roof and from the air it will not stand out as an occupied building." Ianto said patiently, knowing she hadn't thought of that and she frowned.

"You think they might be looking for us?"

Maybe, maybe not. I do not think we are the only ones, the recons showed us that and I would rather err on the side of extreme caution here. This is a good spot, a good place to make a life for us all. We can survive here. As much as I talk about bugging out scenarios and such … I would rather not. We must be clever. That's how we will survive."

Gwen nodded and looked into the room where Scout was now moving things about on the back benches. "You know, if that is going to become some sort of grease pit they need rags. I will go look in the non-rooms for sheets and rip some up."

She headed off with a task and Ianto smiled, the rooms not being used were now being called the non-rooms and the children were enjoying pillaging every now and then. Ianto had also noted the amount of wooden furniture in them and knew in the cold of winter they would have extra wood if needed.

And the guys would love smashing furniture up like Neanderthals.

Ianto found Tosh in the kitchen, a huge pot of soup on and he hummed, "Chicken noodle?"

"Yeah, and some vegetables such so the children eat something other than burgers" she laughed, "The bread Rhys makes is nice but…"

"Dumplings!" Ianto said with delight as he peered in, "Oh Tosh. I love dumplings!"

Tosh lit up as she saw his delight in her work.

Everyone seemed busy today.

But … where were the kids?

 


	6. making room

Like leaving a puppy alone with a soft toy thinking they would love it and cherish it forever only to find it destroyed, Ianto wandered into the room and froze as he finally recalled the mental minds of children.

Paint was smeared up the walls, over the table and chairs in the middle if the room and the floor was a sea of glitter.

"OH GODS!"

"Taddy!" Mica appeared form behind some boxes….also smeared with green paint to match the walls, "We are making this room our cubby house. Isn't it pretty?"

Wei popped up for under couch cushions and grinned at him, splashes of red paint all over her face, "This is gonna be our sleep out room. We will put the TV there and when we wanna have a camp out we can camp in here with sleeping bags and stuff like a real camp. Look, we painted a big fire!"

Part of Ianto was horrified as he looked at the mess but another part was sort of relieved as Mica explained the smears of green on the walls was long grass and she was trying to work out how to get high to paint trees. The camp had not scarred her, even if it had been a scary time. She not only remembered camping out but had enjoyed it until the world went mad. She was not blaming camping for losing her mother.

"Well … I like it. Can I help?"

The kids whooped as he pulled the table over to a wall and Mica now saw height. She ran over and clambered up, "How do we do this?"

"How about … I paint the tree trunk and branches then you can paint leaves? Big green splashes? OR maybe some can be autumn trees with wild splashes of red and orange? Gold?"

"We can make some leaves from paper too!" Wei exclaimed, "stick them on so it sticks out from the wall!"

"OOOOOOOOOO you are sooo clever!" Mica told her friend with affection and they were running to get paper and scissors soon cutting green circles and ovals out to become leaves.

"Tiger? Hungry?" Jack said from the doorway as he looked around at the room "Hey! A camping room! Awesome! Inside camping. We can ask Uncle Rhys, I think he said there were some tilly lamps somewhere that ran on batteries, you can pretend they are the old candle ones."

"YAY!"

Ianto followed them all to the 'Foodage Room' as Scout had written in large letters on the doors and found Tosh excitedly waiting to feed them all.

"Soup?" Mica asked as Tosh hesitated with concern and the children peered at their bowls. Ianto went to scold his child for seeming ungrateful when she said "Yum. I love soup."

Tosh relaxed, as did Ianto who was never good at that side of parenting. He hated chastising and scolding, seemed to do it a lot ya know? Rhiannon did say that was how it is, you have to be the boss and sometimes the bad guy. It's not about being best friends but still … he hated seeing her upset or disappointed, especially in herself.

"Dumplings" Jack crowed, "I love dumplings. They are awesome, what a sweet size Tosh. Yum … mouthfuls."

Tosh started to glow as everyone agreed, even Gwen trying one tentatively despite saying she had actually never had them. Gwen was really starting to show now and Ianto was noticing the different wardrobe she was wearing lately. More mother earth, wafting dresses and things. He hoped there were warm clothes as well, she seemed to be revelling in the bump as she wore things to emphasise it.

If he remembered one thing from his own time … you got over that excitement damned quick when you realised your favourite clothes don't fit.

Jack was watching him as he glanced at Gwen and wondered what he was thinking about so Ianto sent an image of himself from his time with Mica, a day he stood naked in front of a fill length mirror and felt fat and unattractive. Jack paused as he processed the image and then sighed softly, his smile wistful as he told Ianto that was a pretty picture and the lovely belly looked snuggable.

"Snuggable?" Ianto said out loud, "Is that a word?"

"Yep" Wei said happily, "Me and Mica are Snuggle Pals. We get snuggable for naps, right?"

"Yep" pop went the P as that little mouth grinned.

Jack smiled lovingly at her, "Ah … my daughter, you are so prefect I might have to bottle you up like a rare perfume."

"Don't be a divvy, I wouldn't be able to breathe" she rolled her eyes as she smiled at him, "But thank you Dadda."

Jack looked like he might cry, his delight palpable as he struggled with his food and Ianto felt the overwhelming joy between them, Crypto looking up from his conversation with Andy to watch as Jack reached out to stroke the little girl's cheek and whisper affections.

He was glad Ianto had found someone that accepted him, accepted her too.

Too long he had felt that sorrow deep down in Ianto's very soul that Lisa could never breach.

Jack was there.

Ianto had let him in.

Finally … Ianto was in love.


	7. Hush.... what's that

Ianto felt the place shifting into a routine and as the first snows started he hoped this was a good thing, the need to be so vigilant was waning and sometimes it seemed like he was the only one on alert, checking and rechecking monitors where the remote cameras had been set up.

Was he overdoing it a bit?

Owen seemed to think so, "For Godsake man, just enjoy your dinner. So what if you are half an hour late moving the camera angles for the late afternoon sun for fucksake!"

Ianto looked over at Jack who was deep in conversation with Kip, the last of the stock being moved as the soft swirls of snow danced against the windows. Although light … barely enough to settle on the ground, it was enough to tell them a good blow was likely to follow.

Winter was here. Knocking at the door politely before ransacking the place.

"Maybe you're right" he leaned back and nodded at Owen, "It is just my nature to be a pessimist. It is a lovely meal, you have outdone yourself Owen. I didn't even know you could to tortillas, they are delicious."

"Uni days" Owen shrugged as he happily took the praise for his cooking, another thing that had happened was this taking turns cooking. No roster, just if you felt like it you said so and then did so. Ianto wondered if they did need some sort of order.

"Maybe a white board with the days of the week written on it" he said suddenly, even though only Jack had been listening via the bond but the others had become used to the sudden explosion of conversation now, "Then anyone that wants to cook can claim a day, then the menu for that meal can be seen. Means anyone that wants a go isn't feeling like they are stepping on toes and we can all see what to look forward to each day."

"Good idea Tiger" Jack said happily "My curry needs a day to cook and I don't want to get underfoot."

"God! I love a good curry, me!" Rhys said happily as he patted his tortilla filled belly "I'm getting fat."

"There is a fully functional gym" Ianto said with a snort of amusement, "You could always accompany me sometimes for a go on the treadmill or whatever. Maybe a spinning class?"

"Spinning? I can't knit" Rhys frowned and Ianto giggled softly as Jack explained with a huge grin that it means immobile bikes. Spinning as in the wheels spin but you go nowhere.

"Ah. A road to nowhere, I like the sound of that. Isn't that a song?" Rhys laughed at himself, "So … we go hard and stay home?"

More laughter as others joined in and Ianto rose, "Well, I am late but will do my daily task of remotely moving the cameras to cut the afternoon glare. You know I will be antsy until it's one."

"Well , yoghurt ice cream for afters. Come get some later I will leave berry aside for you. You like the wild berry" Rhys said as he rose and Ianto smiled affectionately at him.

"Thanks Papa Bear" he bowed, then left as Rhys started to clear the table.

Ianto headed to the monitoring room and settled in the chair to begin moving the many camera lenses so the afternoon sun did not reflect off them, his hand over the keyboard as he froze, staring intently at the tracks in the barely there snow.

Tyre treads.

A vehicle had recently passed over the bridge and was moving towards them.

Then he shakily clicked the closer camera and caught the tail end of a jeep, rising to hit the alarm with horror as he realised he had been too slow. That half hour might have cost them valuable time.

Who was this moving at them with speed.

Did they know they were there? Was this a random stranger passing by unaware of the school hiding behind the hedgerows or was this someone coming directly to them.

Damn it all he had been asleep at the switch. The one day he lets it slide and look what happens.

Stuck in a School Daze.

.

.

.

.

Ooooo … and you will have to wait for the next one.

I know.

Orrible, aint I?


End file.
